n into something, Barskor," he said. "Didn't complete my mission. I
don't know what happened, but I hope it never happens again."

Barskor looked at him curiously, then turned. "Chief," he called,
"something's gone wrong. Konar's been hurt."

* * * * *

Meinora listened to Konar's story, then shook his head unhappily.

"You ran into a transvisor, I'm afraid. We didn't think there were any
on this planet." He paused. "There were definitely none discovered to
the west, and we looked for them. But now, we're close to the east
coast, and you said that girl looked eastern. The eastern continent may
be loaded with 'em."

Konar looked curious. "A transvisor? I never heard of them."

"They're rather rare. You only find them under special conditions, and
those conditions, we thought, are absent here. But when you find one,
you can be sure there are more. It runs in families. You see, they're
beings with a completely wild talent. They can be any age, any species,
or of any intelligence, but they're nearly always female. Visibility
refraction just doesn't work right for their senses, and they can cause
trouble." He looked closely at Konar.

"You were lucky to get away. A really terrified transvisor could kill
you, just as surely as a heavy caliber blaster."

Konar shivered. "I believe it. But why are they called 'transvisors'?"

"The name's somewhat descriptive, even if it is incomplete. As I said,
visibility refraction doesn't work right in their case. Somehow, they
pick up visual sensation right through a screen, regardless of its
adjustment. But things seen through a screen are distorted, and look
abnormal to them. Unless they're used to it, they get frightened when
they see a person with a refracted body shield. That's when the trouble
starts."

Konar nodded in understanding. "You mean, they transmit their fear?"

"They do. And they'll shock excite a mentacom, completely distorting its
wave pattern. If they remain conscious and scared, their fear is deadly
to its object." Meinora drew a deep breath.

"As I said, you were lucky. The girl fainted and let you get away." He
shrugged and turned to Barskor.

"We'll have to change our mode of operation," he added. "We'll pick up
the Earl's mentacom and belt at the hunt tomorrow. Find him alone,
knock him out with a paralyzer, and give him parahypnosis afterward.
It's not so good, but it's effective. But be sure you are alone, and
don't tr